Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Vatican Puts 'Vatileaks' Governatorato Department Under Financial Scrutiny Of Ernst And Young

The Vatican has hired an international accounting firm to scrutinize
the department at the centre of corruption allegations that surfaced in
last year's "Vatileaks" scandal.

Ernst and
Young will look at the "Governatorato," which runs the day-to-day
activities of Vatican City, including its lucrative museums, the Holy
See said in a statement.

Since assuming office in
March, Pope Francis has taken action to tackle years of financial
scandals, some involving the Vatican bank, which is being reformed
after years of failing to meet international standards against tax
evasion and the disguising of illegal sources of income.

The
Governatorato is the department where Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano,
the deputy governor of Vatican City, worked before his abrupt transfer
to the United States after speaking out against what he said was
corruption there.

In letters leaked to Italian
media by former Pope Benedict's butler, Vigano complained to the pope
that the department awarded contracts to Italian companies at inflated
prices.

In one letter, Vigano said he was shocked
to find that in 2009 the Vatican paid about 550,000 euros ($741,100)
to build a larger-than-life Christmas nativity scene in St. Peter's
Square.

Vigano said he had managed almost to
halve the cost but he was subsequently transferred to the United
States, despite an appeal to his superiors to be allowed stay in his
job. He said he was being punished for doing his work too well.

The Governatorato denied Vigano's allegations of corruption and cronyism.

Ernst
and Young will deliver its findings to a commission appointed by Pope
Francis to advise him on how to make the Vatican's financial activities
more transparent, the statement said.

With
Monday's move, three Vatican departments are now under review by
outside firms.

The other two are the Vatican bank and APSA, a
department that manages real estate holdings and financial and stock
portfolios.

On Monday the Vatican also issued new
statues for its Financial Intelligence Authority (AIF), further
strengthening the regulatory office's independence from potential
interference from senior members of the Church hierarchy.

While
the statues mostly incorporate changes on financial transparency
already enacted, they also establish a new "office for prudential
supervision", a body that Moneyval, the Council of Europe's anti-money
laundering committee, said was needed.

Moneyval, which carried out a review last year at the Vatican's request, is due to conduct a new assessment later this year.